Job Discussion Forums

[Bud Powell]

I've heard Koreans refer to their fathers or older brothers as "appa" or "oppa".

I heard a Chinese girl address her father as what I thought was oppa (oh-pa). I asked the mother if the daughter was indeed addressing the father as oppa, and she said yes.

Is this a regionalism or something just peculiar to this family? The parents have no ties to Korea whatsoever. I asked.

What is the informal way of referring to the Chinese father? I know of "ba". Is there another informal and respectful form of address or way of referring to the father?

[choudoufu]

could have been "laoba."

[Bud Powell]

Okay. That could be it. Is that as informal as mama?

[johntpartee]

Ba-ba is father. Stress on the first syllable, descending tone on the second. O-pa with the long "o" is grandfather. I'm assuming "oppa" sounded like "ah-pa"? Probably a child's dialectic rendering (local slang, as it were) or perhaps the child hasn't learned to speak very well yet!

I've heard the informal "ba" for father; I've never heard a (very young) child refer to mother as anything other than "mama".

Oddly enough, most children refer to their grandparents as "grandpa" and "nana".

[roadwalker]

I've heard "laoba" (children in direct address to their fathers) frequently when out and about. I wouldn't be surprised to hear something different in some areas, however.

[johntpartee]

[cloud_pleaser]

I believe 阿爸a ba and 阿妈a ma are the terms you heard. It's kind of like saying "hey mum". Not 100% sure on this, so more seasoned China hands feel free to correct me
Do Chinese people address their parents as 老爸/ lao ba or 老妈/ lao ma? I've not heard it. I was under the impression that they only used it to talk about their parents to other people.
I could however, be wrong

[johntpartee]

Yes, it would be best to make a blanket disclaimer, i.e., WHAT WE'VE HEARD.

[choudoufu]

i sometimes hear kids screaming "老爸/ lao ba !!!" to get daddy's attention.

but have only heard it in hainan. i should say only understood it in hainan.
in other places, i can't always quite understand the dialect.
strange really, when a chinese person says 不好意思，我不会讲汉语。


this explains it....

Beijing says 400 million Chinese cannot speak Mandarin

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-23975037

[Bud Powell]

Lao ba is probably what I heard and her mother didn't want to correct my pronunciation.

But lao ba would be a word used to refer to one's Dad and so would ba ba and a ba?

I'm not yanking anyone's chain here. I am writing something, and I am trying to be as authentic as possible. It's not for a Chinese reader, so if either lao ba or ba ba or a ba would be an informal reference I'll go with one of them.

Thanks

[johntpartee]

From what I've heard, ba-ba is the most common form of address for the male parent.

[DCHun]

[Bud Powell]

They were probably speaking a local dialect, though the thirteen year-old girl might have been speaking putonghua. Both parents are university-educated.